Declined guest, he says he'll book again

[Margaret543]

Have you ever declined a guest who made you uncomfortable, only to have him say he'll be booking your unit again in the future? Can they do that? We allow instant booking but this guest came in as a request because he didn't have all the necessary requirements for instant booking. No reviews, etc. I felt off about the reservation because it was one guy booking a few nights by himself and all we could see was his first name and location, and according to that he already lives in the same city as our unit. Ok, maybe he wants a staycation or is having work done at his house. But instead of telling us why he was booking our unit, he just said "I'm thinking noonish on the 28th." What?? I'm guessing that means he wants to checkin early (our check in is at 3pm), but that's not how you ask for early check in and that doesn't tell me why you're staying at my airbnb by yourself when you already live here. I know there wasn't anything major wrong with the reservation, but as a woman I have to follow my gut and this rubbed me the wrong way and I don't apologize for that, especially when it comes to someone staying at my house (I live on site). I declined, he asked why I declined, we said the unit was unavailable and answered Airbnb's survey saying the reservation made us uncomformatable. However, he responded and said he likes our unit and will be booking again in the future. Now I'm afraid to unblock the dates or get in trouble for declining him a second time. If I mark a reservation as making me uncomfortable, does airbnb keep that person from booking me again? I think it should!

[Lisa723]

@Margaret543 block him:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/HOW-TO-BLOCK/m-p/976977#M244774

[Kath9]

@Margaret543, more and more I am receiving booking requests with a message along those lines - no purpose for visiting or any other information, just an assumption that they have a confirmed booking and often stating they'll be arriving before my listed check in time. It is highly annoying, but it usually comes down to simple ignorance (they are often 1st time users). I usually respond by saying that this isn't a confirmed booking yet and to please give me some details about the purpose of their visit and who they are travelling with and to confirm that they have fully read the listing and agree to the house rules and check in time before I accept their booking. 

In your case, the biggest red flag for me would be that he lives in your area so I think you were right to decline. If you're uncomfortable about him booking again, just block him.

[Sarah977]

@Margaret543  I think it best, if declining a reservation, and the guest asks you why you declined, to be honest while still being polite and professional. Instead of telling him the dates were unavailable (some guests, if told this, will contact Airbnb when they see the dates still available on your calendar and complain, which could cause Airbnb to read you the riot act or suspend your listing, and if you block the calendar, you'll of course be losing potential appropriate bookings).

"To be honest, XX, I don't feel comfortable accepting a booking request from someone who makes no attempt to tell me a little about themselves and why they wish to book with me, especially when they have no reviews or verifications, instead just announcing when they'll arrive. Perhaps in the future you'll be a bit more communicative with someone whose home you'd like to share. Hosts appreciate that."

This would probably stop him from trying to book with you again and educate him on good guest-host communication. Or he might send back a nice, apologetic message that sets your mind at ease, although I'd be wary and inclined to decline, too, with a local with no reviews or proper verifications.

I recently had a very similar booking request message- "I'll be arriving at noon if all goes according to plan." But he had two reviews, both good, and some decent profile info, so I just messaged back asking if he had thoroughly read my listing description and reiterating the few things I feel guests should be aware of regarding my offering, saying I'd be happy to accept his booking if he could confirm those things. He responded right away, indicating that he was aware of all, and telling me why he was comng to the area. In other words, the message he should have sent in the first place. He turned out to be a very sweet guy and a good guest.

[Kath9]

@Sarah977, @Margaret543, I'm getting this more and more. Usually, it's just something like 'See you on the 5th!' or 'We should arrive around noon' (even though my check in time is 3pm). It really pushes my buttons. But, like Sarah said, it doesn't usually mean they are going to be bad guests, I think they're just a bit ignorant about how Airbnb works. Once I respond with what I wrote in the previous message, they are usually very quick to provide me with all the information (probably feeling a bit embarrassed too). But it's also a learning curve for them.

I agree with Sarah that it probably would have been better to communicate with the guy about why you declined, or even engaged in a dialogue with him first about the purpose of his visit. Telling him the dates aren't available just leaves it open for him to want to book in the future.